Down with Love
by Scarlett88
Summary: A Rachel Berry song-fic; takes place shortly after Rachel's break up with Jesse St. James. It shows how Rachel got her groove back. Song lyrics are in bold. Feel free to review. :


Down with Love

Rachel Berry raced through the house into her beautiful pink Hello Kitty bedroom; it was her favorite sanctuary – and only sanctuary of late. Before Glee club was started again in the fall, she spent more than three quarters of her free time in her room, slaving away to her MySpace page, creating new life-long goals, or exercising to keep her body in perfect shape. She felt safe in her room, away from her peers, from the world…who were only out to hurt her in the end.

Glee had opened her to a brand new world – one of color, life, and friendship. She had finally begun to find the acceptance that she spent her life craving for, and when the fates handed her a boyfriend in Jesse St. James, Rachel truly believed that life was perfect…until it was literally snatched away from her.

Jesse wasn't who he claimed to be – it was as simple as that, and no amount of singing could take away the sting of rejection completely, the memory of his kiss, of their first meeting in the library, and when he told her by the locker area that he had transferred schools – and Glee clubs – just to make her his girlfriend.

No, Jesse wasn't who Rachel thought he was, and she hated him for that: hated him for coming to McKinley High in the first place, for making her his girlfriend, and for being cowardly about his intentions. But the one thing that she hated the most about him, was that he made her love him; he was the perfect boyfriend for a few short months, and he had won over Rachel completely. Rachel _hated _Jesse St. James, and she _hated _love even more.

"Who needs love anyway!" Rachel threw her hands into the air in frustration. She had gotten through sixteen years with only the love of her fathers to help her – why should she need love from anyone else? _Love just complicates everything, _Rachel muttered, as she wondered what she could do to get herself out of this funk. Regionals were in a few weeks, and Glee Club was expecting her to once again lead them victory in the same way she did at Sectionals. _What would Barbara do, _Rachel asked herself, referring to her idol and favorite star, Barbara Streisand. Like Barbara, Rachel was Jewish, and determined to be a star – no matter what. _To heck with love, _Rachel muttered, sitting up. She went over to her CD player and found one of her instrumental tracks. She turned her video camera on, in case she needed to remember this performance for inspiration later.

Smoothing out her hair, Rachel began to belt out:

**Down with love  
With flowers and rice and shoes**

Rachel tapped her feet to the beat, imagining that she was standing with Barbara, providing inspiration and insight to women everywhere**.  
Down with love  
The root of all midnight blues **

_Jesse isn't worth being blue about, _Rachel scolded herself inwardly; _when you become a big star, he'll be a painful memory._Rachel swung along with the slow jazzy pace of the music.**  
Down with things  
That give you that well-known pain  
Take that moon  
Wrap it in cellophane **

Rachel did a front kick with her left leg, imagining it colliding with Jesse's skull.**  
Down with love let's liquidate  
All it's friends  
Like moon, June, roses  
And rainbow's ends  
Down with songs  
That mourn about night and day  
Down with love  
Take it away, away **

Rachel spun around the room, getting more involved with the music, hearing the jazzy beat speed up just a little bit. _I don't care if I ever see him again!_**  
Take it away, take it away  
Give it back to the birds  
To bees and the Viennese  
Down with eyes romantic and stupid  
Down with sighs, down with cupid  
Brother let's stuff that dove  
Down with love **

This was Rachel's favorite part of the song, the tempo sped up drastically, and the beat was strong, giving her the opportunity to shout out her feelings through lyrics.**  
Down with love  
Liquidate all it's friends  
Like moon, June, roses  
And rainbow's ends  
Down with song  
That mourns about night and day **

Rachel was now in full force as she pranced around the room, letting go of all of her negative energy.**  
You are the one...  
And I don't stand a chance with a ghost like you  
Ah, the promised kiss of Spring is here...  
What does my heart go dancin' overhead...  
On the ceiling near my bed...  
We go now...  
Because I talk to the trees, but they don't listen to me  
I tell them: You say either - I say i-ther  
You say neither, I say neither - I say ni-ther  
Either, i-ther  
Neither, ni-ther  
Let's call the whole thing off! **

Rachel jumped on her bed as her hair swerved around her body.**  
Take it away, take it away  
Give it back to the birds  
And the bees and the Viennese  
Down with eyes romantic and stupid  
Down with sighs, down with cupid  
Brother let's stuff that dove...  
Down, down, down  
I go on round and round  
I go in a spin  
Hating the spin, I'm in!  
What is this thing...  
What is this thing called love?**

Rachel raised her hands for the dramatic finale, letting out a deep breath that she had been holding in while performing. As Rachel turned her camera off, a smile formed on her mouth, the first one in the past few days. Performing really was her calling, _what she was meant to do, _and Rachel wasn't going to let _anyone _male or female, boyfriend, friend, or enemy, keep her from her lifelong goal.


End file.
